The Louvre Museum’s Apollo Gallery has reopened to visitors nine months after a significant heist that exposed security vulnerabilities, though the stolen crown jewels are no longer on display in the gallery. The $102 million theft, which occurred in October, prompted a reassessment of security measures at the world-renowned museum.
Visitors can now once again experience the Apollo Gallery's richly decorated 17th-century interior, a space that once inspired the Hall of Mirrors at Versailles. Designed by architect Louis Le Vau and decorated by painter Charles Le Brun under King Louis XIV, the gallery is themed around the sun. France's Culture Minister Catherine Pegard described the gallery's reopening as a symbol of a new beginning for the museum following what she called a "trauma for the whole world," and pledged to enhance security across national museums.
Despite the gallery's reopening, the stolen jewels are now exhibited in a more secure location elsewhere within the Paris museum, according to Louvre Director Christophe Leribault. The October heist involved two individuals using a movers' lift to access the gallery, smash a window, and break open display cases before escaping on scooters with two accomplices. The operation lasted less than seven minutes.
Four individuals suspected of direct involvement in the robbery have been charged and are in custody. However, the stolen items, with the exception of a crown belonging to Empress Eugenie, wife of Napoleon III, have not been recovered. The damaged crown was found near the museum and is currently undergoing restoration.
In the wake of the heist, Laurence des Cars, who led the museum at the time of the robbery, resigned in February after facing criticism. State auditors and other critics had questioned the museum's comparatively low spending on security and infrastructure maintenance, especially in contrast to its acquisitions of new artwork and significant post-pandemic relaunch projects. While a quarter of the museum's collection is accessible to the public, the fate of the stolen jewels remains a concern.